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The Tin Shop, Breckenridge's first guest artist facility, welcomes its newest artist-in- residence Jennifer Ghormley, a master printmaker currently hailing from Denver, who began her time in Summit County last week with an opening studio reception. On Thursday, Ghormley will host her first public workshop as part of the facility's mission for public outreach. This woodcut printmaking workshop takes place at 5:30 p.m. at The Tin Shop's Arts District location on Washington Ave. in Breckenridge.

The workshop will allow participants to create bold, graphic images with subtle woodgrain texture and learn the broad potential of the woodcut printmaking process. Reservations for the woodcut printmaking workshop are not required but are encouraged because space is limited in the studio. Tickets are $15 and all necessary materials are included in the price. Participants will be provided with one woodblock, printing paper, ink and all necessary tools. You will need to bring your own graphic image to work with, at approximately 6 by 9 inches.

Woodcut printmaking, one of the earliest forms of printing, is done by cutting a wood plank so that a design is left in relief, that is, all parts of the design that are not to print are cut away. The design is then inked with pigment. Finally a sheet of paper is laid upon the inked designed, or vice versa, pressure is applied by hand or through a press, and a transfer of the design is obtained on the surface of the paper. Woodcut printmaking is a meditative process much like weaving, painting or ceramics.

Ghormley employs a variety of techniques in her translation of ideas into works of art. She received her MFA in printmaking in 2006 from the University of Nebraska and her BFA in printmaking in 2002 from Metropolitan State College of Denver, where she now teaches drawing, printmaking and digital arts courses. From 2007 to 2009, Ghormley was the studio manager of Anderson Ranch Print Editions at Anderson Ranch Art Center in Snowmass Village.

The Tin Shop features a variety of national and international artists for periods of one week up to one month. Guest artists have open studio hours for public visitation, offer workshops in their medium and host lectures and public projects throughout the year.

"It's been in existence since 2006," said Jennifer Cram, administrator of the program for the Breckenridge Arts District. "Since then we have hosted anywhere from 10 to 18 artists a year, about one a month. We've had all kinds of artists, playwrights, sculptors, painters, musicians, printmakers, textile artists, installation artists, and on and on.

According to Cram, the project is funded as part of the operational budge for the Breckenridge Arts District. There is a fully furnished studio apartment above the Tin Shop where guest artists live while they're here.

"Artists are selected based on the quality of their art work and their public participation proposal," said Pram. "In addition to having their studios open, they also host some kind of workshop or demonstration, and we try to make that as affordable as possible because we are really trying to make this accessible to people. It has a very public component, while still allowing the artists time to work on their work. What makes this even cooler is that work that's being in made in Breckenride, in the Arts District, is being acknowledged around the country and internationally."

Ghormley will continue her stay at the Tin Shop to work on projects until June 2. Until then, her studio will be open to the public Thursdays through Sundays from 2-6 p.m. For more information about the program and to make reservations, email websiteart@townofbreckenridge.com or call (970) 453-3364.